The high-powered committee that is monitoring the question paper leak has not directly said anything about its recommendations on the cancellation of examinations as a result of the leak of question papers in the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exams, but did say the examinees need not to be worried. “We will make recommendations to the government regarding our findings on the question paper leak, considering the interests of around 20 lakh examinees. The government would also see the interests of the students before taking any decision,” committee chief Md Alamgir, who is also the secretary of the Technical and Madrasa Education Division, said yesterday.

The secretary gave his explanation in reply to the queries of journalists after the 11-member committee held its final meeting at Pool Bhaban in the capital. “We still cannot reach a final decision as we have not got some papers from the police. After getting the papers from the police, if we see that we don’t need any further explanation, no further meeting will be held, and we will submit the recommendations,” the secretary said.

“We would not recommend anything that could be damaging for the students. They are children. The government would not take any decision that would hamper their lives,” he added.

Asked about the question paper leak, he said, “There has been no leak of the questions in their details. There have been some partial leaks in the multiple choice questions (MCQs), but the creative papers have not been leaked, as per our findings.”

Asked whether the committee would recommend the cancellation of the exams, he said, “It’s a secret matter. I won’t say whether or not the exams would be cancelled. However, I will say the students need not to be worried.”

The committee chief said they would submit a report containing their recommendations within a day or two. “The ministry can follow our recommendations, or it can take its own decision,” he added.

He said, “The government means to keep people happy. It does not mean to keep people in anxiety.” Earlier, on February 18, the head of the committee told the journalists that they have got proof of question paper leaks, both partial and full. Amid the question paper leak, the education ministry formed the 11-member committee on February 4 to monitor the overall assessment of the SSC and equivalent examinations, including the question paper leak.

The SSC examinations were marked with widespread leaks of question papers from the beginning to the conclusion of the examinations, from February 1 to 25. Almost all the question papers, especially the MCQ ones, were leaked on social media like Facebook and WhatsApp, but the ministry could not do anything to prevent this. Before starting the examinations, the ministry had said the exams would be cancelled if any proof of question paper leak were found before or after the exams. The committee, however, also said it would place the utmost priority on the examinees before making any recommendation.